Economic assessment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a marine fuel for CO2 carriers compared to marine gas oil (MGO).

CO 2 carriers are considered as a solution for CO 2 transport as a part of carbon capture and storage (CCS) and ship fuel cost is an important parameter impacting total cost of CO 2 shipping. Heavy fuel oil (HFO) is a traditional marine fuel but alternative marine fuels such as MGO and LNG shall be considered for future researches on CO 2 shipping because low sulphur content fuel is required in sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECAs) from January 2015. However, LNG has not been seriously considered as a marine fuel for CO 2 carriers and its economic feasibility has not been studied so far. This paper assesses economics of LNG fueled CO 2 carriers based on a CO 2 shipping scenario in North Sea and fuel price in June 2016. Parameter studies are conducted to understand the influence of important parameters such as a marine fuel price, LNG fuel system cost, and small LNG distribution cost. The results show that LNG fueled CO 2 carriers are more cost-effective than CO 2 carriers utilizing MGO based on fuel price in June 2016 and when crude oil price is higher than approximately 30–50 USD/bbl. Furthermore, technology development on LNG fuel system and bunkering infrastructure could strengthen the competitiveness of LNG as a marine fuel for CO 2 carriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]